Beware the folds of spaces
by Miss Hiraya
Summary: The war has begun. In the middle of it, it's Strange who finds Loki first. He's supposed to be dead but he keeps pestering anyway. To be fair, the guy does try to help in his infuriating way though not without shortening Stephen's lifespan by stress first.


**Title** : beware the folds of space

 **Summary** : The war has begun. In the middle of it, it's Strange who finds Loki first.

 **Notes** : This was cross-posted in my Archive of our Own account under the same pen name. This was originally written before Infinity War came out, so there were assumptions made, but don't worry I tried to fix that.

* * *

Stephen was trying to find answers.

Lately, it is all what he has been doing. Once he had been a proud neurosurgeon finding solutions to interesting puzzles which were his patients' cases; then after the accident he had been a miserable, desperate man trying to find some cure to his damaged hands and dead career. What he found was just not the answer to his predicament; it came with a whole bag of surprises that ultimately changed the way he viewed life and reality as a man of science.

He gained perspective, some freaky powers, left the field he studied all his life, gained a new career, and lost his teacher. Gained some and then lost some, but he tried not too think on the numbers stacked on each side.

( _Christine_ , he lost her, too. He's still trying to decide whether he should try and get her back- or if he ever deserved her in the first place.)

Now he was in his Astral form, currently isolated in one of the secret, self-claimed dimensions to avoid possible casualties and inevitable onlookers. Today's research involved a certain Mad Titan who just popped out of a hole in the sky one day, speaking about powerful stones and basically human extinction. Apparently, Earth hasn't had enough with just one genocidal Norse god and an ancient evil who devoured planets for a hobby. No, of course not; this time it's another ancient and immortal mad titan whose name is supposedly a huge threat across the massive universe.

 _How does Earth manage to attract such beings, anyway? How were humans that unlucky?_

What he found instead was a familiar silhouette of a skinny man who had a fondness for a mix between goth and royalty evident in his garb, looking like an actor straight out of a medieval theater. He saw long limbs, slightly tamed curls of black hair, and a seemingly thoughtful expression that looked entirely too out of place for the man he had come to know as the crazy, genocidal god who destroyed Manhattan years ago. His brain did not fail to bring up the fun time when the guy exiled his own father to a retirement home for a practical joke.

"Loki?" his tone pitched high at the end at the sheer ridiculousness of it all. If it was his own magic making an illusion of the supposedly dead Asgardian (even then, he could not fathom why he would even do that) then he should probably take it as a sign to get some rest.

And anyway, last time he checked, nobody else should be with him in this space- maybe Wong, but he never told the other sorcerer about where he was going exactly. Okay, as a general rule of his newfound career, anything could happen so Stephen had to adapt with a pretty open mind to be at least functional. Still, this was weird.

The man was in the middle of catching what could have been a diamond shaped lid of a fancy liquor. Vibrant green eyes stared at him like Stephen was the intruder, narrowed and reminiscent of the look he received from the God when he pulled daggers in threat after thirty minutes of endless falling.

 _How was he able to count, though?_

A few seconds in, Loki broke the silence but instead of perhaps a proper response he blurted out in a soft growl. "What took you so long?"

Stephen already braced himself knowing the telltale sign of anger from the other man but quickly did a double take at the question. "Beg your pardon?"

Loki made the look of affront very well, and even made it so that it also looked insulting as if Stephen was the stupid one. Thor did not directly say his brother was a pompous ass, though luckily everyone else could see it from a mile away. He even had a way of making innocent words sound like a jab to his person. He was at that level of mastery with offending people. "You sure took your sweet time."

Stephen brushed the insult with a shrug of his shoulder. Next question, then. "Your brother told us you're dead. For real this time. I don't know why that has to be added but I feel it is important. Is this one of your practical jokes? Because I'm telling you it's really a bad timing. Also repetition already lost its charm."

He never thought he'd see any Asgardian after helping the brothers reunite with their father in Norway. Yet, not a week after, everyone was stunned to see the God of Thunder with a missing hammer and an eye, and upon a brief catch up, also carrying with a burden of burned down realm, a dead father, an evil and also dead sister, a somewhat reformed but also dead brother and most of all the dead refugees which were supposed to be what's left of their race, too.

Stephen remembered the Captain and Stark sharing a look for the first time that wasn't full of sharp edges. After that, the two downed a drink together despite the fact that it wouldn't do a thing to the super soldier. It was a tough and somber atmosphere that followed but Thor brightened up eventually and introduced his new friends who called themselves Guardians of the motherfucking-Galaxy. That was another bag of surprises altogether, but at least they also gained allies.

Back to the point, which was the fact that Thor clearly told them everything that happened and how his younger brother was dead,

(giving the Tesseract to Thanos himself, " _This is my bargain_ ", before he was crushed under the Titan's boot)

which now apparently was not entirely true because Loki was in front of him chuckling like there was some kind of an inside joke there, straightening his back from where he was lounging on the wooden chair.

" _Heavens_ , no. If it makes you feel better, I am still quite in the process. I am here to salvage a bit of sanity while I'm able to." The trickster said it flippantly like it did not make Stephen uncomfortable nor confused. The sorcerer quietly filed that information for later analysis but before he could continue with another question, Loki flicked his finger in the air. The dimension slash library suddenly stilled like a picture and broke into splinters, the supposed familiar study room expanse of mahogany table and books-scented air replaced with a live view of an honest to god outer space. Stephen's eidetic memory could already point out a small, metallic ship in a distance, but mostly he was also disoriented and even more wary.

"I've not enough time so ask questions later and focus into remembering this now. I also don't have the luxury to do this again for your tiny brain so make it count."

"If you clearly think so low of me, why are you even-"Loki sounded a growl, one that Stephen fully associated to the Loki who invaded New York and killed eighty people in two days.

It was his turn to fall, a shriek coming short on his lips when his cape saved him from going splat into the cold steel surface. It may have saved him from his own joke turned against him, but his cape also almost choked the life out of him in return. He gave Loki a glare but instead of the god laughing at his expense, the man only gave him a raised eyebrow before turning on his heel and walking in long strides in the hallway.

The ground was beginning to feel steadier, but again it changed setting from the hallway to a large glass window overlooking the vast darkness of space. The blue marble he recognized as his planet floated nearby, so close and yet so far. He felt a rather gentle tug on his shoulder, getting his attention to a massive gaping circle with crackling blue sparks outlining its diameter. It was the same gaping circle seen across the globe since the invasion began.

The scene changed rapidly again like a hasty teleportaion. Everything was blurred, like seeing through someone's eyes who was either wearing awful glasses or only seeing from afar. He could make out a sketchy alien screen technology composed of pulsing dots all over a blue grid. There's one huge blue dot, and also five more huddled around it.

Three dots were already moving. And fast. Stephen tried his best to memorize the series of numbers beside the circles. He already had a good hunch on whatever these were supposed to be.

Loki was nowhere, his mind suddenly supplied as his gaze swept over to the whole scene. As he tried to back away from the room, he met with a line of Chitauri soldiers passing through his body and loading up heavy weaponry to a bend in the corridor. He tried to follow the crowd, heart pummeling in his ears while also trying to search for the trickster among them.

A sharp, bruising grip tugged around his wrist. Stephen's first instinct was to lash out with his magic, but then he felt a punch to his gut before he was dragged through what he could only describe as a shredder. Travel between spaces was never a good experience to begin with, but this path was entirely different. This one was too rough and unstable.

He stumbled on his feet as he felt like his spirit was spat out of the pathway he just went through. There was too much of everything to absorb all at once that he needed time to recompose himself while Loki stared down at him from his perch with a bored expression. Right. Back in his mind palace.

It did seem the raven was willing to wait for an extended period of time. Not that Stephen would give the other the satisfaction of looking down at him for a moment longer.

"Did you have to punch me?!"

Green eyes twinkled amusedly, and Stephen had a distinct feeling that there's also a heavy load of condescension there, too. "You were about to do something stupid", he said in his dry tone.

To be fair, Loki startled him first. Stephen would like to raise the point but that would be them getting off tangent now. "I can't trust you."

Loki hummed, a regal air about him, "Wise choice. Believe me or not, it wouldn't change anything for me. For you and your band of heroes… I wonder."

Stephen straightened up, schooling his expression into one of his unflappable ones to face Loki. Still, the guy looked amused more than anything, and it honestly grated on his nerves. "For all I know this could be one of your schemes. The last time you faked your death was certainly memorable, your brother told me. This time would not be different, you pretending to play on our side to gain favor of the other." Thor could be forgiving, sure, but Stephen was not the kind of person to be careless enough to trust a man who lied and betrayed even his own family. "What do you want this time?"

The dark-haired man rolled his eyes, "Oh, be creative, would you? You people called me the God of Mischief, but I'm also a God of chaos. Chaos thrives in wars, mortal. This is nothing but hobby to me."

At this point, Stephen just wanted to punch him in his smug and condescending face. Before he could lunge at the man though, Loki's smile was the last thing he saw as his astral form was forcibly pulled back to his body.

* * *

He could not trust what Loki said. The guy basically confessed himself to be a God of mischief and lies, and did not even look remorseful when he said he thrived in chaos. He enjoys this. The God thought nothing of this but a game, and he did not care because he was not the one pulling the trigger nor losing a limb for it. Perfect logic for a psychopath.

It was an elaborate scheme; a trap. One that not only him but the majority of the team agreed on. As Stark said, "Loki could play anyone, but not the same people twice. And certainly not _Natasha_ once."

Thor was reluctant, Bruce looked betrayed, and Valkyrie looked angry while giving the thunderer an I told you so look. The rest who had never dealt with the trickster were neutral, but the fact remained that Loki did come to Earth as a villain so there's really not much of a counter argument for his motives.

Yet after Wakanda, and New York, three more cities fell under attack and this time they were on entirely different continents. The alien forces were seemingly attracted to the most populated areas with the least defenses and where the local government and international aid could not have saved every person in such a short notice. Three heavily populated cities belonging to the third-world countries burned to ashes in just two days and the death toll kept rising since then.

"Thanos courts death like a lover. Even more, he thinks what he is doing is a favor so the lives of those who are weak have at least meaning as an offering." The blue lady with the Guardians, Nebula, remarked after that, and her eyes betrayed what emotion she tried to hide when she uttered the ominous name.

It was not like he decided late about trusting what Loki showed him. Even in the few hours that he had before the inevitable happened, he couldn't have stopped the attack completely, nor did they have enough hands on board for the scattered threats. Still, it did not make the acid crawling up his throat burn easier.

* * *

"Hundreds of thousands, dead. Millions, even." Stephen bristled as he approached the dark-haired god who was once again on his perch and playing catch with the same object as before. Before this outburst, Stephen did not show emotions as much as the rest did watching the fires burn and razed lives to the ground, but the act was hard enough. He was a doctor for all his life before this. Nothing hurt as a doctor more than knowing it was your job to save those lives and be rendered completely useless. It was a sentiment that Stephen was sure did not exist for the man casually leaning back on his chair with a book on his lap. He's not even sure the man had any semblance of sentiment in his body. In evidence, Loki looked bored and nonplussed as always, nevertheless he had the decency to sit up and face his visitor.

"If you're going to spend your time telling me the obvious then I should tell you it's a waste of time, which you don't really have much to spare, am I right?" Loki raised an eyebrow, the corner of his cracked lips turned upward. He looked smug and unrepentant the way he said it, but Stephen was doing his best not to rise to the bait this time.

He was here to test Loki's extent of loyalty, no matter how bleak the venture may be. The collective had mixed feelings about it especially after what happened, so he's here for some clarification. Though honestly, the Widow would have been the best for this kind of task. Anyway, Romanoff taught him for this given it was the easier way for now.

Before he got to his question though, Loki was up on his feet again and it gave Stephen a wave of déjà vu. He started to think this interruption was deliberate.

The transition was rougher, the scenes floating around and past him having an uncomfortable, suffocating feeling to it. He couldn't tell for sure, maybe it was the atmosphere that felt almost like being trapped in a sealed box, but at least the images soon focused and became clearer. It's the voices that provided him with information this time, though.

He did not know whose voices they were but they sounded like the horrible screeching of metal that sent his nerves on the edge just by listening to them. An almost countless army was gathering below the deck where he stood disoriented, allies- slaves and mercenaries hungry for blood and money- from the deepest ends of the universe. Or so he heard from the voices which were obvious with arrogance and malice in each word.

Stephen had no idea there were other races under the Mad Titan's rule or how he came to understand the alien language they spoke in the fist place, but it's bad news considering they were barely fighting back the Chitauri. It's not like they were intelligent creatures to begin with, but they were of massive numbers that had determinedly pushed at their own forces. Their own mortal forces, who were certainly not robots who do not need much sustenance and rest as much as their enemies do, barely stood a chance when this time there were no ways to seal the portal.

All of the sudden he was brought back from his own thoughts as the voice drew nearer that it froze him to his spot. This time he felt being dunked into cold water; his vision muddled and the sounds became muffled and far away, but the presence behind him was enough to make him feel a choking dread to his core. Stephen did not have to turn to know that whatever it was, it was smiling in all its sinister glory.

 _This is it. I'd been caught. This was a trap all along._

He felt a sharp tug on his arm, the scene shattering like glass under his feet.

"He isn't attacking to subjugate. His purpose is to decimate every living being on the planet as an offering to his Lady Death." Loki was back in his chair, looking not a hair out place while he on he other hand was trying to still his heart and stumbling on the edge of the table for the effort.

A taste of his own medicine, he supposed. Did Thor tell on him? These Asgardians could certainly hold grudges pretty well.

"You think we don't know that by now?" He gritted his teeth in retort. If the destruction they witnessed earlier was not enough indication, surely the piles of dead innocents left behind in its wake should be.

"Knowing is not enough."

He could tell Loki was staring at him. Yet, he could not meet the blue hues of the Norse god who gave a warning of what's coming with an emotion he could not come to associate with the unhinged, genocidal villain. Stephen let out a feral snarl past his lips, the frustration of losing so much at once and feeling control slipping from him. Questioning be damned-

He did not pull his punch, but it was only met with a hollow space like the god was never there. Not even a shadow; just a thin green wisp lingering in the air before it dissipated in the next blink.

"He will come for the one who bears the Mind Stone. Do everyone a favor and don't be an idiot. You know what it means to have two stones at the same place as him." Loki's voice floated in empty space, eventually reduced to a whisper at the last word.

He thought he felt a finger tap into the hidden relic hung around his neck. A reminder. A grim warning.

* * *

He meant it literally, of course, Stephen should have known better. Thanos himself had effortlessly tore through their defenses and grabbed what he came for and the wake he left was of bloody ruins. It was only short of miracle that the Eye of Agamotto's seals were enough to hide the Time stone from the titan that time.

(But he felt the stone sing; felt it call _sweetly_ to its siblings and for a moment Thanos stilled to hear the wisps of its call. The moment felt like an eternity.)

It was the first up-close battle they had with the purple monstrosity and they certainly did not come out unscathed. Vision's death took a heavy toll on them, a weight they would carry for years to come- for Stark, even more. Wanda's heart broke and nobody was there to save her off her feet from the abyss this time; she was inconsolable.

They've lost more, and those that were not did not walk out unharmed. He knew everyone woke up to feel the growing, suffocating weight crushing on them as the days dragged on.

Stephen was still the worst at comforting even after being a doctor for years, but he knew that comfort was the last thing they wanted right now. They did not have the luxury of time to mourn for the ones they lost.

The soldiers of their group had known this, done this before, but what of the ones who had a life before unwillingly taking up the mantle?

Stephen warily entered to his thinking space, not even pausing as he sat on the chair next to a now confused Loki.

Wasn't that ironic? The time he wasn't actively trying to throw the trickster off his feet was the exact moment it worked.

An elaborately designed teacup quietly appeared in front of the sorcerer. Eyes flickered to it, Strange watching in wary curiosity as it filled itself with warm liquid. Tea.

How very British. So gods were capable of such delicacy, too? Or did they teach this to the mortals decades ago? It would be amusing a thought, and also irrelevant now.

"Thor still worries for you." Stephen took the cup, surprised that it was even solid.

Loki took the quiet glance as precaution so he drank from his own first, delicate and prim in his simple movement. "Yes, he does that." He swore there was a smile in there hidden behind the delicate cup, though it was gone like it was never there in the first place.

Taking a small sip, he couldn't help but nod in appreciation at the exquisite taste that certainly lived up to its alluring scent. He was not familiar of the taste, figuring it was as much alien as its giver was. Alien and yet sophisticated. "Others are still slightly partial about you trying to communicate with me. And honestly, I'm still pissed at you. But compared to that purple bastard? I think I'd rather have your company."

"Understandable."

"Where are you? Thor wants to come for you. Besides, we all could save the time if we stop meeting like this. " Stephen shifted, turning to face Loki, realizing this was the first time he's seen the god up close.

Disappointing, he thought. The god looked like a zombie beneath all the condescension: an undernourished, and too pale zombie who hadn't got the sun to shine on him nor eat something for decades. "You want revenge? Is that your angle?"

"If I told you an answer, would you quit asking irrelevant questions?" Loki scoffed, dancing away from the question all too easily. All too conspicuously. "You're not very subtle in your desperation to try and turn me to your side."

 _Whose side are you really on?_ Stephen wanted to ask, but that was a useless question by now. "Where are you?"

Loki went silent, contemplative, like he was deciding to spill something or not. "I don't know. I could not follow after the second time they took me somewhere. You get one more question." He said in a bored tone that could have fooled everyone.

"What do I tell them?"

Loki actually looked at him in incredulous green hues. There's no malice in them; a glint of mischief maybe, but it was a sign of burning fire for a trickster god like him. "Tell them to get their shit together if they want to win this war."

The raven stood, the cup disappearing into some pocket of space. A flick of the hand followed, but the space didn't change. Still, Stephen hurried on his feet like a learned conditioning, only to realize that it was for nothing. Glancing to the other man, he caught the barest of raw panic on his face before it turned into a bitter scowl.

He did not know what he was thinking at that moment then, but the look sent warning bells in his head that he almost stumbled on the words, "Tell me something else. About his allies."

The God turned his head sharply to look at him, eyes narrowed. Whatever he saw and read from Stephen's expression, he either misinterpreted it or decided he could not be bothered with pointing out the deliberate diversion. "Ah, right. His children. Don't you already have two in your team? I'm sure they can provide more detail about their other murderous siblings."

"True. But if you know where they are headed, we might be more prepared for them. And his armies. There's only so much Nebula and Gamora knew before they defected, and we have to know if there's more."

He could see the gears turn inside his mind, the look in his eyes focused at a distance that's miles away from there. He seemed to freeze for one moment before he spun on his heel and then faced Stephen. Before Stephen could react, a warm palm was placed on his forehead.

His mind blanked like a clean slate and then narrowed to only symbols, letters he figured. Names. "You'll have more next time."

* * *

He was right. They were names and races, all bringing nothing but tightlipped anger from Gamora and murderous aura from her sister. Peter Quill shaking his head in disbelief. But what hit him was the fact that it's the first time he actually sent the god to some kind of errand. Without a fight, too. Somehow, that felt like an achievement.

Thor thought so, too. He had known his brother all his life as someone who did what he wanted whenever it suited him, rarely following the order for some good old mischief.

Anyway, the information proved to be useful as they had time to prepare this time. Stephen would not let the chance to fight back escape.

* * *

He forgot about the 'next time' appointment. It seemed like a forgotten sliver of hope against the tremendous despair that swallowed the team whole as the war waged on.

The Time stone was ripped from him right when he was in the middle of learning a spell to use it once and for all. It took the life of his one companion to keep his neck from getting crushed as well.

Wong died a warrior's death, but to Stephen there was nothing to celebrate in death no matter how honorable it was. The dead would not have time to appreciate what honor that was, and most of all Stephen could not stop thinking about how reckless he had been in trying to tame an Infinity Stone and how it caused his close companion's life in return.

He knew this could happen, that it was only a matter of time. There was a moment when cold realization doused him like cold water that this was unlike any other threats they all faced before. That they were outnumbered, overpowered and hilariously so. He knew. Millions dead and their blood were on their hands as a constant reminder.

They had no idea what was up ahead the countless losses and imminent destruction, and yet they had to take a stand or go down with a fight.

("Because that's what heroes do", Thor said, mighty but solemn in his silent vow.)

("Because it's the right thing to do", Rogers firmly declared and his eyes brimmed in fire and unshed tears, shield gripped too hard it trembled.)

("Because I have people to protect", Stark clenched his fists and looked away to the kid he had decidedly taken under his wing, on the infirmary bed. )

("Because nobody asked for this", Barton quietly held Romanov's hand as if it was the only thing holding them together.)

("Because I want to be someone my daughter already thinks I am", Lang murmured like a prayer. "Too simple, isn't it?" he smiled while his hands trembled as they held a child not his just hours ago. The child bled to death in those same hands.)

(He did not ask for this. He begged for his hands to heal so he could be an ordinary person again, practicing medicine and saving lives under his knife. Still, he was given something else and even if he went back to being a doctor now, would he make any difference? They were going to die eventually, one way or another, under his knife trying to save them or from someone else's malice. _He did not ask for this_.)

It wasn't just him who lost someone that day. He knew that. It wasn't just him who lost a comrade. In fact, the next meeting was spent trying to ignore the glaring empty spaces of those who once fought with them.

Despite the spaces, he felt suffocated. He retreated to his sanctuary where his library of books and infinite sunset welcomed him but there was no silhouette of the man he's reluctantly used to already. It did not make him feel any better.

* * *

"Ah, you are truly at your wits end if you're trying to do a spell in that book."

The smooth, taunting voice sounded too close behind him that Stephen could not help but whirl around and curse under his breath. He was either getting too invested in learning the spell he was vying for or sloppier, which meant his body was demanding payback for weeks of sleep deprivation and very unsatisfying rests. The latter did not sound good.

The sorcerer schooled his face into an unimpressed scowl before he closed the book with a tired huff. "You are right. I am desperate. We all are. While you're-"

Looking almost transparent, apparently. Green hues stared him down, amused more than anything as Stephen was momentarily blindsided by the drastic change since the last time they met.

"Are you sure you want to continue doing that? Greater sorcerers took decades to learn it and paid a high price for the rest of their lives because of it. Well, those not yet dead by the end of it, anyway. With the time stone, maybe..." Loki raised an eyebrow, nonchalantly pointing out how desperate Stephen was. Not that he needed pointing the obvious. It had been weeks and they were all breaking apart but he could not give up just yet. The heavy clang of the captain's shield dropping to the cold bare ground was deafening even until now. It followed him until here, like a persistent shadow he cannot outrun. The bitter outcry that followed still rang in his head, even as tried to focus his mind into the book he was reading since hours ago. But he could not give up just yet.

"The Time Stone was taken." He said instead, swallowing past the heavy lump in his throat.

The god scoffed, "All the more impossible, then."

"Captain America is dead."

Loki waited for more. Hell, he was right if he was expecting a long list of people who died while he disappeared to somewhere. Stephen wanted to be so angry about everything at once and the God in front of him was a better candidate than any of his comrades because unlike everyone else, Loki's expression was not changed by grief and loss.

"Wong is dead" he continued, and by this, he knew his voice faltered.

"My condolences."

Stephen slumped further in his chair, not even bothering to hide his rugged and unkempt appearance. "What do you have to say?" he hoped it was something good. He knew they all needed it, even if it meant only a small step ahead of the enemy. They needed to know there's still a sliver of chance even after this.

Loki did not share the same sentiment. "Nothing that would help you now. Thanos has more than half of the stones. If he is letting you live until today it is only because he is playing with you." The god sounded grave and solemn and yet the words bit harshly; a slap on the face as he knew that was true. It did not mean he appreciated it coming from the dark-haired man so blatantly though, as if he needed another brutal reality check.

Before he could stop himself he whirled at the taller man with barely contained rage and bitterness. "And you aren't? Aren't you supposed to enjoy this? I suppose nothing means anything to you unless it's Thor, or heaven forbid, about _you_!" he spat out. Acid rose and laced his words into jagged and brittle weapons.

Loki just looked on unperturbed, managing to fuel the other's anger more. Stephen had a distinct feeling that the god knew and understood and thus never lashed back. Or maybe it was another evidence to the God's lack of a sentimental bone in his body. Still, it served for Stephen to envy him more.

"I do not revel in death, Stephen." Loki said more softly than he was ever heard before. There was an apology somewhere in there, too. His voice held genuine gentleness for the other that Stephen could not stand to get angry at, no matter how irrational the rage was in the first place. The statement itself was a contradiction to when Loki admitted to thriving in wars where chaos is, but which is the truth? The confusion just made him even more upset.

It's funny. They had opposite tempers the first time they met. Stephen wondered where his own old, unimpressed self went. Maybe it died somewhere back in the countless battles he had to go through.

"I'm sorry- that was uncalled for. You were only just trying to help.." He could not even look at the man because as soon as the anger ebbed away, he was faced with another reality that settled another weight on his shoulders. The reality was that the man in front of him was fading, too.

 _You were only just trying to help_. .

"You are dying."

"I told you." Loki hummed, hands clasped behind him with a thoughtful look on his face as he stared out the window behind Stephen. A perpetual sunset colored the skies; Stephen's favorite time of the day that he took comfort in whenever his eyes needed a break.

(His heart beat too loudly at the all too familiar sight, familiar look, familiar gait- grief clawed up to his spine from where he had once hastily buried it with razor sharp claws and poison tips.)

"I guess a thank you is in order for helping me delay the inevitable."

(" _.. Look at me. Stretching one moment out into a thousand… just so that I can watch the snow."_ )

Stephen wanted to look away, but the last time he did, his teacher was already gone. He did not want Loki to go.

* * *

"What now?"

Green hues stared incredulously at him like he was stupid. Stephen chuckled mentally at that. Too many déjà vus from the man was apparently funny now. Repitition did not always lose the charm.

Stephen caught the god rolling his eyes, and the laugh that bubbled from his own throat was almost hysterical.

* * *

The next time he saw Loki, they were on opposite grounds. Everyone was braving for the biggest fight, the last one, and everyone was prepared for it to end.

On whose end it may be.

On the other side. before them was the grinning and vicious Mad Titan himself amongst his army and a blue creature too small for a frost giant.

"Brother!" Thor nearly leaped from his spot, expression raw and vulnerable at the sight of his younger brother stripped down of glamor. Thor knew Loki would rather do anything else than be seen in his blue skin, though nobody else would have known that. What they only saw was how the god looked all too different in his blue getup, sporting a ghostly, gone to hell and back a few times appearance.

Thanos drank in everyone's myriad of expressions with manic glee.

"Loki! Get off me, Hulk, can't you see my brother- his magic-"

"Ah, yes. He proved to be truly insufferable having them. I couldn't say I'm surprised by his betrayal anymore but it was a commendable scheme still. Worthy of his title as the God of Lies." Thanos' eyes found the Midgard sorcerer, grinning maliciously at the raw fear slipping past his mask of bravery even if it was only for a second.

"Finally, my last trick up the sleeve, the last monster at my command." Thanos turned to meet bright red eyes, smiling down at him full of sharp edges and sadistic pleasure. "Kill them."

A deathly chill instantly took over the atmosphere. Stephen wore his cloak and Stark was in his suit and even they felt the biting cold too. "Okay, he's an ice prince now?" Stark quipped, repulsor aimed at the already charging trickster.

Thor stumbled as the first sharp spike of ice tore from the ground and maimed at the group. The first hail of crystal spears followed, prompting everyone else to retreat and scatter. Thor rushed to meet his brother who then sent him flying with a timed punch in the face.

Loki did not look like the manic god the Avengers dealt in New York, nor did he look like the trickster who Bruce and Valkyrie knew to have gained favors from the grandmaster in just a week. He did not look like the brother Thor knew and mourned for many times in their shared lifetime. He looked an entirely different person, a stranger.

He did not look like the sorcerer Stephen often received taunts and eye rolls from.

"Don't come in contact with him! A frost giant's touch gets you instant frost burn!" Quill warned from their intercom, him and his team struggling to come and aid the others after the sudden turn of events. Loki might be one person, but he was in Thor's Godly level.

It was like fighting Thor without his powerful lightning and hammer. With Loki they had to deal with standard Asgardian strength, ice powers and blue skin a weapon in itself combined with a sharp, intuitive mind and quick, precise attacks for each unguarded weakness. He had spent time learning them after all, when he waged war in Manhattan. But unlike then, his sense of self and control were now completely lost to the Mind Stone. Everyone could only think how much Loki could have been a bigger threat years ago, could have succeeded, if only he was this serious and too far gone at the mercy of the Stones.

It was not a pleasant realization.

Thanos watched the scene, destruction laid to the ground that was once a bustling metropolis, and oh how the mortals stumbled and fight uselessly against the runt of a frost giant. He wondered if he should get the rest of the Jotuns to his service as Loki looked like he was doing well on his own even as a runt. He should have done this to the fallen prince, then maybe he would not have deviced a plan to fail spectacularly then. He would have conquered Midgard in no time. Amused, he signaled for the rest of the troops to surround and bring down the last defense of the mortals.

* * *

Thor went head toe to toe with his sibling as the rest had to tend to the swarming soldiers. They knew it would be better if it was the two of them. It was cruelty to have Thor the final say and blows, but it also meant the respect for the brothers' bonds at the same time. "Loki, listen to me. Please, brother, I know you're in there."

He earned a sharp jab for trying, the jagged end of ice ripping through the flesh on his side. Thor grimaced, slamming the other's lighter weight to the ground with a rough grip on his shirt. Frost began to creep on his fingertips and arms where they touched. "You're all I have left, brother, please-"

"Get help." Red hues glared at him with fierceness that Thor only took a moment to recognize.

"What?"

"Come on, brother. You love it." A boyish grin twitched on Loki's blue lips, showing sharp, shark like teeth. He watched Thor go through a storm of emotions in a second before he heaved his brother up and threw him as hard as he could across the ground. The god flew to an unsuspecting purple giant who did not see it coming.

* * *

Stephen cannot, for the life of him, ever tell what's up with these two brothers.

Thor just threw his brother yards across towards the Thanos. He looked _very_ happy about it, too.

The rest shared the same sentiment it seemed as they stole confused glances with each other. Stephen suspected someone trying to stifle a surprised laugh as well, and failing miserably. He watched warily as Loki rolled from the titan and their ridiculous tangle of limbs in a mad scramble to get as far as possible, eyes wide and alert as the purple bulk rose slowly from disgrace like he was a predator about to snap his prey's neck.

Everything else froze in place, anticipating for the fallout.

"You really do surprise me with your schemes, trickster." Thanos almost sounded patronizing except his voice was gravel and poison even with the way he chuckled.

"To be fair, it was humiliating on my part, too." The said man shrugged helplessly, but the smile on his lips was vicious and almost childish as his fingers deftly showed the titan the green stone in his hand. He eyed it curiously, probably expecting other stones for a power boost, and shrugged again. "I suppose I can't be choosy."

The raven god gripped it hard while they vaguely heard Thor shout in the background, grin forgotten in place of a slow burn of horror on his face.

Stephen caught blood red eyes flitting to stare him down, and this time he could not discern whether it was amused or condescending as per usual setting. He only managed to stare back and swallow.

(The last time he looked away, she was already gone)

He could not help the dread that settled permanently in his stomach in the few seconds they shared a knowing look. A parting look.

Green light flooded and took over everything within a radius, the God of mischief in the center. Before he took the full force of the Time stone's power to his bidding Stephen saw those red eyes gravitated to Thor.

Thor, who watched with a look of a man broken too many times by grief and loss and still managed to be surprised and feel the horror of losing someone like the first time.

(What more could he lose? How could he lose more if there's nothing left? The fates just had to bring one back and tear it away again, simple)

The smile on Loki's face was the last thing Stephen could remember before everything faded to nothing.

* * *

Stephen wakes up with a start, his mind going overdrive from seeing 14,000,605 possible futures. He's not even sure how he managed to count them, but it doesn't matter now. He had grasped one lone thread of time that lead them here, and he'd seen it- Loki using the Stone to rewind everything. Did he know what was going to happen from the beginning? Where was that beginning? Why had he never said a thing?

The Stone surely showed him the same 14,000,605 futures. Did the God know this- _this present_ \- was what his decision would result to? Did he know about everyone's deaths and never warned them of it? Did he know he had to die again and again, for this future to work?

So many questions, and yet they do little help now. Stark's hand is grounding him to the present with their newfound allies hovering nearby, asking if he was okay and asking what he was doing in the first place.

He was not okay. They were going to have to die, except for Stark.

(it seems dying was a prerequisite to defeating ancient, homicidal beings that comes in his way)

He could only hope Stark did not see the look of sorrow he gave the man before he unwillingly answered.

This is the only way.

* * *

 **Notes** : would love to hear your thoughts in the reviews!


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